Priyanka's turn in the spotlight

Priyanka Chopra says she hates films that insult her intelligence, so it would seem her choice in profession wasn't a wise one considering India's most lucrative film industry has a history of producing unintelligible fodder. Yet, the actress comes to its defence, claiming the changing times and an intelligent audience is bringing about a level of maturity in filmmakers that was never seen before.

"The trend is changing and the perfect example of this is my forthcoming film, Kaminey (releasing Thursday in the UAE)," the 27-year-old tells Emirates Business over a crackling phone line from Mumbai. "Vishal Bharadwaj has directed a brilliant film, an action/comedy, which provides a fresh take on Mumbai life. It belongs to a different genre that has never been attempted before."

However, she is quick to add that while Indians will relate to the story, like most Bollywood films these days, Kaminey too has been made keeping international viewers in mind. She says: "You cannot deny the global audience, of which Dubai is a very big part."

In fact, it was that very global appeal that saw Chopra a regular feature in the emirate's society pages last year: first for promotion of her film, LoveStory 2050; then again in the capital in October to rub shoulders with Antonio Banderas at the Middle East International Film Festival; she capped off the year as the 'Goddess of Atlantis' at the lavish opening of Sol Kerzner's hotel on The Palm. "I love it, so much so that I even toyed with the idea of purchasing property in Dubai. Of course, that's been put on the backburner for a while," she states.

While she doesn't entirely rule out the investment, she admits her mother, Madhu Chopra, is her financial manager and she follows her instincts in such matters. "But I do know I need to get more involved, not only because I'm a film person who comes from a moneymaking industry, but also because I'm a girl who needs to set an example of being financially independent."

If such is the case, Chopra should also be one of many who has revisited her finances considering the state of the economy that is still reeling from a global downturn. Quiz the star, and she doesn't deny this. "The recession has affected everyone. The money habits in the industry were bordering on the insane before this reality check hit. And it is not just independent filmmakers, but also the corporates that are bearing the brunt, considering they have a lot more money invested in the industry.

"Personally, my films haven't been delayed and neither have I had to curb my spending, considering that I've never been much of shopper. In fact, I hate it so much that I could easily hire someone to do it for me." Prod her further and she admits the downturn has seen filmmakers and reps of the brands she endorses approach her to renegotiate her contract. "It's a reality of life and all of us actors are accommodating about this."

As an endorser, Chopra is on top of the food chain, lending her name to premium brands such as Nokia phones, Sunsilk shampoo, Lux soap and Hero Honda bikes, to name a few. She claims her philosophy at choosing companies is a simple one: if it's a brand fit and one that she respects, then why not? "I took on Nokia because my first phone and every other since has always been Nokia," she says. "My numbers have changed, the brand hasn't. The same applies to Lux and Sunsilk; I live my brands."

These days though, Chopra seems to be living a lot through her daily tweets on the popular social networking site, Twitter.com. With 19,790 followers already, Chopra was recently involved in a media generated Twitter war with Bollywood diva, Mallika Sherawat; the latter actress lost out by 8,953 fans.

Ask Chopra about this and she simply laughs, saying: "The operative words here are 'media generated'. Mallika and I were never involved in any such competition or war. We simply don't care. As a matter of fact, she recently even sent me this silly mock-up poster of a film called Twitter's Angels, a spoof that allegedly stars the two of us along with Bipasha Basu and Shah Rukh Khan. We shared a big laugh over this."

Post Kaminey, Chopra will have her hands full with What's Your Rashee? and Pyaar Impossible. And no, there's no sequel to Dostana for her. She adds: "Bobby and I had our happy ending, now it is time for Abhishek Bachchan and John Abraham (her film co stars)."

Affairs of the heart Akshay Kumar The duo first starred together in 2003's Andaaz. And while the sizzling on-screen chemistry had the couple come together in three other films, their alleged off-screen affair created furore. The much-married Kumar and Chopra denied the claims, and haven't worked together since 2005's Waqt.

Harman Baweja While Baweja and Chopra have always maintained they are "just good friends", the duo were spotted often dining together in Mumbai's hotspots. They couple even starred together in Baweja's debut film, 2008's LoveStory 2050, but like the sci-fi romance, their real life sparks also fizzled out.

Gerard Butler They met in?Dubai last November, at the launch of Atlantis The Palm. They partied hard at Shah Rukh Khan's private gig and their rumoured romance created a sensation. Chopra met him again this year in Chicago, and then in Mumbai. But the duo deny the romance, saying they are only friends.

Shahid Kapur They've been caught off camera too many times to deny an affair, but deny they do, as Chopra and Kapur set the media hounds on a chase during the shoot of their forthcoming film, Kaminey (pictured). Is it real or just a publicity stunt? We guess the news will filter out post release on August 13.